Peppermint
by p-attinson
Summary: Alaric nearly succeeded in killing Elena at school before she was saved by none other than Elijah. The Original takes her some place safe and they play catch up once again. JUST NOTICED THE LINE BREAK IS NOT VISIBLE. Sorry for that.


**A request on Tumblr: Anon**

Her eyes shifted to the right as she spotted the blur.

Alaric's stance was stiff as he listened to the sudden racket; a pulsing ache remained to beat at the side of her skull. What had Alaric done to her? She hadn't remembered a thing. Now, as she leaned against the lockers, she watched as his eyes began to scan the hallway.

"What the hell was that?" He muttered softly.

Elena kept silent, her hand on her wound and involuntarily searching for escape routes.

Alaric smiled widely as he unclenched his hands and raised an eyebrow. "You didn't tell anyone. You aren't that naïve…" He paused, walking towards her. "I hope."

Elena gulped tensely. "Go to hell," She snapped.

Alaric chuckled lightly. "No thanks; I've heard it's unpleasant."

Then, she felt it; the wooden stake Stefan had given to her as protection as it probed her back pocket. It was smaller, but had more of a chance to sink in the heart quicker. As she debated the poorly processed plan, she began to wonder if that part of Alaric was still buried deep in there. The man who dropped everything to protect her, to teach her, _had_ to be in there somewhere.

But as he raised his palm, she knew she had no choice. He was gone, just like the sanity he still struggled to hold.

Before he was able to strike her once more, she pulled out the stake from behind and thrashed it into his chest. Or, at least, she thought she did.

But the stake was clean, and the only wound that had been inflicted to Alaric was from behind. A stake, as thick as a sink pipe, was now pierced through his torso. She gasped, scrambling backwards on her hands before she discovered Elijah hovering over him.

"Elena…" A voice groaned.

She noticed Alaric's tone; he was still there.

"Alaric…" Elena gasped. She fled to his body, brushing her hands against the stake still lodged into his body. "Alaric, I'm so sorry…" She cried. She struggled to pull it out, to hold some hope that Elijah has missed his heart by, even, an inch.

But she knew those odds.

"Elena, tell everyone, I'm sorry…" He gasped, clutching his wound. "I still remember. I'm so…sorry."

Tears spilled off of her cheeks and she brushed a strand of his hair out of his eyes. "Alaric, stay with me…" She begged. She watched as his eyelids fluttered and she grabbed his face so tensely that her knuckles began to turn white. "No! Alaric!"

And as she begged him to stay, the light in his eyes finally gave out; he breathed no more, and the last sign of emotion had shed one last time; a final tear escaped and landed on her wrist as a final goodbye.

"_No_!" Elena screamed. Her throat burned, like acid, and she gripped his forearm with a pressure she had never known she had. "_No_!"

Elijah stepped around his corpse, touching her arm and lifting her up from her knees. She thrashed in his arms, her eyes soaking wet with tears. She refused to leave him; she refused to let him die like this.

"_Alaric_!" She bellowed. Elijah continued to draw her away, tucking her head into his chest.

Alaric's frozen body eventually wore thin from her sight.

"How did you know I was there?"

Elena's statue was curled into a ball as she leaned against the couch's cushions. He had taken her to his rented apartment just east of Mystic. It was a pleasant penthouse; bookshelves were scattered along the walls and paper balls resided in the nearest trashcan. He even had a laptop, which surprised Elena, sitting on a desk beside a stack of papers.

"I stopped by your house and found your brother," He sighed. "I didn't mean to frighten him, but I was curious to where you were…" He straightened his tie in the mirror, his eyes occasionally fixating on her unmoving body. "I needed to speak with you."

He noticed her squirm. "About what?"

Elijah took a step back, seating himself in the arm chair in front of her. "I wanted to apologize in person for what I did…" He smirked. "I didn't feel like a letter was…_formal_ enough for the measures I took."

Elena nodded, biting her lip softly. "Is that why you came back?"

He shook his head. "No, I came back because of my sister; she needed to speak with me about some things." He watched as she remained silent. "I'm sorry about Alaric," He sighed. "But he was too much of a threat."

Elena held the blanket up against her chest. "I was preparing for this anyway," She replied, her tone hushed. "I knew it wasn't him. He would have wanted to die."

Elijah didn't reply.

"But," She sighed. "I'm glad you're back. I was wondering about something."

Elijah cocked an eyebrow, puzzled. "About what?"

Elena sighed. "Rebekah said you had feelings for me," She started. "But I was curious to as if it were true."

She watched as he exhaled, raising his shoulders and dropping them in, what seemed like, defeat. "Rebekah has said a lot of things, Elena…" He smirked lightly. "But that doesn't mean they're true."

At first, she was stunned by the swiftness of his lie; then she realized the time he had to practice it. "Right," Elena pretended to brush it off. "I was just curious."

"Would you like anything?" He asked. "Coffee, tea?"

Elena smiled sweetly. "Tea would be nice, thank you."

Elijah smiled in return.

In five minutes, he was back with a coffee mug and Elena noticed the smell of peppermint arise from the cup. She raised an eyebrow and then softly grinned while stirring.

"Peppermint," She whispered.

"I'm sorry, do you not like…" He started.

"No," She replied, turning her attention to him. "It's my favorite."


End file.
